Talking from the sets of his first Hindi directorial film Mahabharat’s Karna tells us about how he decided to make this unique film and why he preferred other actors over his son

Even today, Pankaj Dheer is remembered as Karna in the first Mahabharat series to be aired on television. He has been in the industry for quite some time and has been always itching to work behind the camera. He is making his Hindi directorial debut with My Father Godfather produced by Essel Vision. The film stars Sharad Malhotra and Kratika Sengar in lead roles along with many famous television artists. Bollywood biggies like Johnny Lever and Aditya Pancholi will be also seen playing pivotal roles in the film. We caught up with Pankaj on the sets during the shoots and he spoke to us about all that went behind the making of this unique film.

How did you get the germ of the idea for making this film?

I have been writing since a very long time. One day, a couple of years back, I was walking in Oshiwara nearby a famous restaurant called Shreeji. There I saw a lot of strugglers who had come to give auditions. The buildings behind the restaurant had many photo studios, which also worked as audition centers for various film castings. I saw these strugglers and thought that there are so many people who come to Mumbai everyday to get into films and only a few of them succeed. I decided to write a story on them. That is exactly how the idea for the film generated.

Why did you choose Sharad Malhotra for the male lead instead of your son Nikitin Dheer, who is pretty famous in the Hindi film industry?

For the male lead, I required someone with very chocolate boy looks and not someone who was hugely built and muscular. Nikitin is shaping his career really well. And he is doing so on his own. I told him initially that I am not a very rich man and I would not be able to launch him and make a movie for him. He understood the fact and has found his own ground in the industry. I am happy that stars like Shahrukh Khan, Salman Khan and Hrithik Roshan have their faith in my son’s talent and therefore have worked with him. As far as this movie goes, Nikitin had his own physical limitations and thus I preferred to take Sharad. I did not want to compromise on the character and try to fit my son into it.

BollywoodLifers, you can catch the entire candid chat with the Sr Dheer below. He told us as to why the making of this film has been so secretive and why no one in the cast is willing to talk about the film’s story. He also informed as to whom he considers his godfather in the film industry and whether having a godfather in the film industry is necessary to survive or not. So go ahead peeps watch this entire tête-à-tête with Pankaj Dheer and let us know your thoughts.

Talking from the sets of his first Hindi directorial film My Father Godfather, he tells us a very funny incident from the first movie he worked as an assistant director

Pankaj Dheer has been in the industry since a very long time. He is making his directorial debut in Bollywood with My Father Godfather, which has many famous television artists and some Bollywood actors like Johnny Lever and Aditya Pancholi. We caught up with Pankaj on the sets during the shoots and he told us a very funny incident from his initial days in the industry when he was working as an assistant.

While talking about the incident, Pankaj told us that he was one of the many assistant directors (AD) for a specific film and his chief AD used to bully him a lot. Pankaj was very young then and thus never used to say anything in the beginning but not for long. The chief AD used to make Pankaj give him a massage during the lunch breaks and also used to make him wait till 11 in the night just so that Pankaj could drop him home after he got drunk. Pankaj just kept on bearing for a long time and finally on an outdoor shoot location he lost his cool.

Pankaj entered into the cabin where the chief AD was sitting and drinking. The chief AD didn’t notice him and Pankaj took full advantage of the situation. He put a quilt on top of the chief AD and started hitting him black and blue. After he was satisfied he jumped out of the open window and ran off. By the time the chief AD could get out of the quilt Pankaj had run off leaving the chief AD alone in pain and anger.

When the chief AD complained to the director stating that he had been hit a lot by some unknown person, the director knew that it had to be Pankaj. He called Pankaj and asked him why he had hit the chief AD. Pankaj after admitting to the crime narrated his full grievances against the chief AD to the director. The director was amused and he laughed a lot and told the chief AD that Pankaj had done the right thing by hitting him as Pankaj was an AD and not his personal servant.

Since that day Pankaj decided to always be truthful to everyone and never get bullied by anyone. Even till date he follows the same. Talking about his directorial debut, he says the same but he also says that there is a certain fun element in My Father Godfather where the lead actor needs to lie a bit for his benefit. By the looks of it My Father Godfather seems to be a simple and promising film which has a deep meaning to give the audience. The film would be one of the very rare films to be released digitally and we can’t wait to see the film. Keep watching this space for more updates on My Father Godfather.

Bollywood’s long standing funny man talks about his personal life and why his upcoming film is very unique

Johnny Lever has been an exemplary funny man in the Indian film industry since the 1980s. He has been making us guffaw on his jokes and antics till date. Directors in the ‘90s used to say that getting Johnny’s dates was way more difficult than getting Amitabh Bachchan and Govinda’s dates. We met up with the comedian on the sets of his upcoming film My Father Godfather and he opened up his heart to us.

Why did you agree to do this film?

It is a very interesting film. Plus Pankaj Dheer is a very old friend of mine. I have known Pankaj from 1977-78, way before I joined the film industry. We both are also together in CINTAA. So he came up to me one day with this role in his debut Hindi directorial venture, and said “Johnnyji aapko yeh role karna hi hai”. And once he said ‘karna hi hai’ I knew that I had to do the role. So I did it and Pankajji has done a fabulous work as the director. His vision for the film is very unique and also the story is about the present day scenario. So I agreed to do the film.

Tell us about your role in the film

I am playing the character of an eccentric film producer. He makes all sorts of weird films with strange titles. It would be very funny to watch. Also I have worked with Sharad Malhotra and Kratika Sengar in the film and their interactions with this unusual producer makes the character even funnier to play. I just simply had a ball of a time while shooting the film.

Why did we see you in lesser films post 2000?

It is true that I did a lot of films in the ‘90s and getting my dates was difficult. But all that changed when I saw my kids looking at me with suspicion every night. I used to leave early for shoots and come back late in the night and my kids started thinking as to who is this man who keeps entering our mother’s bedroom every night and then leaves all hustle-bustle in the morning. So I decided to give more dates at home and less on sets.

BollywoodLifers, you can catch the entire candid chat with the witty Johnny Lever below. He made us laugh throughout the length of the interview with some of his jokes. In his quintessential comic sense he told us a small incident as to why his kids stopped recognising him and how the new age stand-up comedians are different than him. So go ahead peeps, watch this entire funny tête-à-tête with Johnny bhai and let us know your thoughts.

We caught up with the two actors on the sets of their upcoming film My Father Godfather when the Punar Vivah actor narrated this funny incident

Kratika Sengar and Sharad Malhotra are being paired opposite each other for the first time in Pankaj Dheer’s directorial debut My Father Godfather. The two are playing the cute, bubbly, naughty, fighting couple and you can see the two behaving the same way on the sets as well. Their characters have a romantic track and is laden with a lot of nok jhok and that makes the chemistry come even livelier onscreen. When we caught up with Kratika, she narrated a funny incident from during the shoots.

Sharad, before the first day of shoot asked Kratika whether she needed a butla. Butla is a small piece of furniture which is used in order to increase the height of the actor while giving close up shots. The actor stands on it and comes to an equal height with the other actor in frame. So Kratika refused Sharad’s offer by saying, “I am not that short and neither are you that tall.” But at last during the final take, Pankaj directed Kratika to stand up on the butla and give the shot. Sharad kept making fun of her height but not for very long! A few days later when Sharad had to shoot a scene with Aditya Pancholi, the director asked him to stand on the butla as well. Kratika saw this and started pulling Sharad’s leg and continued doing the same till the final day of the shoot.

We hope such nok jhok‘s comes out even more prominently onscreen when we see the film, which will be released digitally and will thus, have a wider audience base. The film would also have funny man Johnny Lever and we can’t wait to see this simple yet unique presentation. Keep checking out this column for more such funny incidents from the sets of My Father Godfather.

]]>http://www.bollywoodlife.com/news-gossip/why-did-kratika-sengar-make-fun-of-sharad-malhotras-height/feed/0Why is Nikitin Dheer not a part of his father’s My Father Godfather?http://www.bollywoodlife.com/news-gossip/why-is-nikitin-dheer-not-a-part-of-his-fathers-my-father-godfather/
http://www.bollywoodlife.com/news-gossip/why-is-nikitin-dheer-not-a-part-of-his-fathers-my-father-godfather/#commentsThu, 20 Feb 2014 15:20:53 +0000Prateek Surhttp://www.bollywoodlife.com/?p=318920

Pankaj Dheer makes his directorial debut with this film which would be one of the few films to be launched on the digital platform

Nikitin Dheer has made a mark in the film industry with his negative roles opposite biggies like Salman Khan, Shahrukh Khan and Hrithik Roshan. But that did not guarantee him a place in his father’s directorial debut. It has been a norm in the film industry that fathers tend to direct their sons while making their directorial films but this case is not so. Pankaj Dheer, more famous as Karna from Mahabharat, is making his directorial debut with My Father Godfather, which would have many renowned TV artists. Why did he not have any role for his son Nikitin? We wonder…

On being asked about selecting Sharad Malhotra for the male lead Pankaj informs, “For the male lead, I required someone with very chocolate boy looks and not someone who was hugely built and muscular.” So was that why he didn’t ask his son to play the role? Pankaj laughs and tells us, “Nikitin is shaping his career really well. And he is doing so on his own. I told him initially that I am not a very rich man and I would not be able to launch him and make a movie for him. He understood the fact and has found his own ground in the industry. I am happy that stars like Shahrukh, Salman and Hrithik have their faith in my son’s talent and therefore have worked with him. As far as this movie goes, Nikitin had his own physical limitations and thus I preferred to take Sharad. I did not want to compromise on the character and try to fit my son into it.”

Now that is what we call a director with a vision. By the looks of it, My Father Godfather looks to be a very promising film, with the likes of Johnny Lever and Aditya Pancholi playing important roles. Also, the movie would be released on a digital platform, which would make it available to a wider audience base. We can’t wait to watch this film. Keep reading this column for more updates on this unique film.

We caught up with the Banoo Main Teri Dulhann actor on the sets of his upcoming film, My Father Godfather to know more about his personal life. Read on…

Sharad Malhotra has played the sweet innocent boy for most of his career. But did you know he has used his chocolate boy looks to get attention from cute chicks at college? Don’t believe us? Well, we met the actor on the sets of his upcoming film My Father Godfather, directed by Pankaj Dheer, where he narrated to us an incident from his college days.

On being asked what was that one lie that he had said which changed the course of his career in the TV and film industry, he refused to answer by saying that he never lies to harm anybody. On the contrary he said that he had used the ‘lie weapon’ to his advantage many a time during his college days. There was an instance when he was already dating a girl and some other hot chick asked him whether he was single and Sharad made a puppy face and said YES!

He later went on to confess to his then girlfriend that he had lied just to get the hot chick’s attention. But, as you all know, girls are not that forgiving and Sharad too, had to face a break up. But did he manage to hook up with the other chick with whom he used the ‘lie weapon’? We think so, as the actor made a cute face and refrained from answering that question.

For now we hope he is able to woo Kratika Sengar in his upcoming film My Father Godfather. We hope he doesn’t have to lie a lot to impress her in the film. The film is one of the very few films to be released on web space and would feature many renowned TV artists and also Bollywood’s all time funny man Johnny Lever. It seems to be a simple movie with a very different approach. So BollywoodLifers, keep watching this space for more updates on the film!

When we caught up with the funny man on the sets of his upcoming film My Father Godfather, he had a hilarious story to tell. Read on…

Johnny Lever has been the quintessential funny man of the Hindi film industry since the 1980s. According to directors, getting Johnny’s dates was way more difficult than getting Amitabh Bachchan and Govinda’s dates. But suddenly, he took a step back and got choosy about the films he did. We know you missed him and that’s why we got him talking about his break from the films and more.

Johnny explains in his inimitable comic sense, “It is true that I did a lot of films in the 1990′s and getting my dates was difficult. But all that changed when I saw my kids looking at me with suspicion every night. I used to leave early for shoots and come back late in the night and my kids started thinking as to who is this man who keeps entering our mother’s bedroom every night and then leaves all hustle-bustle in the morning. So I decided to give more dates at home and less on sets.”

But all this has once again changed. He has been doing more films and commercials these days. Is he once again getting back to his busy schedule, leaving his kids in suspicion? “After about a decade of doing less films, my family also got bored of seeing me at home. My wife jokingly said one day, ki muft ki rotiya todna band karo aur kaam karo (stop eating free lunches and start getting some work). So that is how I decided to come back again and once again, I am starting to do more work. But now I try and keep a balance between work and home so that my kids never again look at me with suspicion,” concludes Johnny.

Well, we had always been a big fan of him and wish that he continues to do what he does best—make us laugh. His upcoming film My Father Godfather, is a very simple story with a very different approach. He is playing the character of a film producer who makes films which have very funny titles. Directed by Pankaj Dheer, this film is one of the very few films to be released on web space. We can’t wait to watch Johnny bhai make us go rofl with his jokes and antics. Are you excited too BollywoodLifers?

The comic actor will play a somber character in his next film

They say it is more difficult to make someone laugh than it is to make them cry. Johnny Lever has seen immense success in doing the former and now he is ready to take up a new challenge and do the latter. Johnny will play a serious character in his next film Enemy. Kay Kay Menon, Suniel Shetty and Mahakshay Chakraborty also star in the film, but all eyes are now on the funnyman.

Johnny is delighted with the opportunity. He told a leading publication that he is feeling very good about the fact that he will be seen in a different light in the film. It was the idea of the film’s director to cast Johnny in a role that his fans would love to see him do, but have never seen him do. However, his dialogues will still be laced with the trademark witticisms of the Johnny we know. Wonder how the writers will manage to do that! We hope they do a good job. We’ve seen very little of Johnny lately and he proved in Players that even at the age of 62, he has not lost his charm; his cameo had us wishing for more. Frankly, Johnny playing a serious character is more of a draw than Mumaith Khan (of Dekh le fame) dancing to an item number. Do you agree?